Monday, August 15, 2011

Bad blood brewing among GOP frontrunners

Two rising GOP stars appeared at a fundraising event Sunday night; Michele Bachmann and Rich Perry.

Both studiously avoided looking or talking with the other despite just being one table apart.

I think this is a sign of things to come between these two. Perry got to the fundraiser when it started and listened to other speakers while glad-handing the crowd.

Bachmann on the other hand displayed a superstar status waiting in her campaign bus in the ballroom parking lot while Perry spoke at the fundraiser, and later entered the hall to her trademark introduction theme, Elvis Presley's version of "Promised Land."After she was finished speaking, Bachmann signed autographs from the stage.

The music sound level was also raised for Bachmann’s entrance and exit, which irked one of the event organizers.

The contrast did not go unnoticed by local Republican activists, who traditionally value having direct contact with the candidates in their no-frills state contests.

Bachmann did not enter the venue until she had been assured by a campaign staffer that the lighting had been changed, NBC News' Jamie Novogrod reported.

The stage was dramatically brighter following the change from the Perry campaign’s Tungsten lights to Bachmann’s HMI lights, witnesses said.

"She didn't sit down to visit with us and eat with us," attendee Mel Shaw, 57, told the U.K.'s Telegraph newspaper. "She came into the room like she was Madonna or something, a big star appearing before all us little people. She didn't want to answer questions. That's not the way we do politics here."

Both Bachmann and Perry are heading in the direction of nasty debates and sound bites. Somewhere in that mess Mitt Romney is saying, “Hey I’m running too you know!”